A real reality show

June 14, 2011

Another Memorial Day has come and gone. For some, it was the excitement of an extra day off and a three-day weekend, which included barbecues, picnics and a day at the beach. For others, it was a time to honor those who have given their lives fighting for our country in various wars through the centuries.

For me, this year's holiday brought more angst than ever before. I wanted to do my best to be thankful for those who have fought and died and to try to understand that these brave soldiers should be honored for giving the ultimate sacrifice. In honesty though, these feelings were not as strong as the ones that made me angry and bewildered that we still support the idea of war and that we see it as a "patriotic" thing. I kept asking myself, "When will we reach a higher place in consciousness where the majority of humanity believes that war is wrong and that it is not the answer to global unrest.?"

When I awoke on Sunday, I pulled the section of the morning paper that was dedicated to honoring fallen soldiers. It contained pages and pages of photographs of those who served and died in my home state of Florida. It created a deep sense of sadness, and I began thinking that every one of these soldiers has left behind many who have to deal with the loss. It hit me that every fallen soldier shown in each photograph has a Mom and a Dad, siblings, aunts, uncles, neighbors and friends. I was overwhelmed with sadness that so many people are affected by the loss of each life.

That same day, I saw a commercial for the TV show "60 Minutes" that stated that night's program would be dedicated to one particular soldier who had just received the "Medal of Honor" and who was being honored as a hero. I decided to watch once again to see if I could embrace this whole idea that, somehow, there is something good that can be drawn from war. But, of course, I could not. As I watched this 26-year-old soldier honored by his superiors as well as President Obama, I could only think that this perpetuated the idea of war's inevitability, that it is somehow justified, that even though we hate to lose lives we have to honor those who are brave enough to fight and risk their lives to save their brothers in combat. I was screaming inside, "No! We're not getting it!"

I wanted "60 Minutes" to do a show that did not glorify a brave soldier but instead showed the devastation caused by war. I wanted them to interview the aforementioned loves ones who are left to deal with the death of these heroes, have them share their true feelings of loss and devastation. I wanted them to feature returning soldiers who die soon after returning home from suicide. I wanted them to feature the marriages and families that are torn apart because the returning soldiers cannot deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. I wanted them to feature the overwhelming number of soldiers who turn to drugs and alcohol to deal with their pain and anguish of having been in battle and who often times end up homeless on our local streets.

Because "reality shows" seem to be so popular, why doesn't someone create a reality show about the devastation of war rather that the glorification of one man who risked his life for another? If this was featured instead, it might help to shift the collective consciousness of humanity. It might help us to know that we must find alternative solutions to global unrest. It's sad and unsettling that we have not found that understanding. It saddens me that, as the war machine continues to roll on, funding for initiatives such as education and help for the poor continues to be cut.

Although I believe the human race is in the midst of an evolutionary leap, a leap in consciousness toward the end of all wars, it's just not coming fast enough. Oh, I'm positive that one day in the future war will be extinct, but to get there more quickly we must reveal more, reveal the "reality" of war and the true devastation that it brings to so many individuals and to society as a whole.

Peace out.

Jack Bloomfield is a member of the Coral Springs Interfaith Committee, a division of the Multi-Cultural Committee, and is executive director of One Planet United, a Coral Springs nonprofit dedicated to bringing unity and understanding to all people. Visit OnePlanetUnited.org.